The Flower Puppet
by Sailor Leo
Summary: What is missing from Sasoris new puppet? SasoSaku. Branches off after Chap 264
1. Chapter 1

Authors Note: This is a oneshot. Believe me you do not want me writing a chapter story. Look at my track record, not a single story finished. If I write another chapter, then that will be the last chapter. And so forth. Oh, and I don't own Naruto or the characters.

"I want to see you dance." He said as he pulled the strings attached to his fingers. The lifeless form of Sakura moved to his every whim and thought, and yet, there was something missing. Something was strangely absent from the beautiful girls dance. Every pirouette, ever twist and turn and leap was all wrong. Her arm moving above her head as she bowed like a beautiful ballerina was a hideous, horrible thing

"NO! THAT'S NOT RIGHT!" Sasori said as he hit Sakura hard across the cheek. The force of the blow knocked her back and she crumpled to the ground. He bent his body over her lithe form and ran his fingers over her cheek. His Akatsuki cloak covered them both like a dark cloud of protection. Shallow breathing escaped her lips, like a baby in its sleep.

'The bruise that mars her skin does not digress from her beauty', he thought to himself as he ran his fingers through her silky hair and savored their feel. He slid his hand behind her head and tilted Sakura up to look at him, and he could see tears that spilled from her eyes. His first instinct was to throw her down in anger. But the salty smell of her tears invaded his senses. Bringing her face closer to his, he darted out his tongue and licked her salty tears, relishing the taste. Yes, this was what was missing. In her dance her taste was gone.

He had many beautiful puppets. He had strong and powerful puppets capable of maneuvering any task that he so desired. And yet as he fought this girl with his grandmother, all he could think about was how much he wanted her. He wanted her to dance for him, to be his and nobody else's. He researched her, her background, her ancestry, her daily habits. He had carefully planned and formulated the right way to approach the Akatsuki about his new expirement. The only one that saw through him was Itachi.

'The containers harbor feelings for her, and she for my foolish little brother. There would not be a wiser choice than her.' The Uchiha said at the last meeting.

Like a good puppetmaster, the others danced and agreed with his idea. That was all it was, a simple genjutsu, special gas, and a short trip and then she belonged to the Akatsuki. She belonged to him.

Now that he had obtained the girl from her home in the night, he was free to do with her as he so wished.

And yet why was she making it so difficult?

Sasori knew the answer. Her tears told him. The reason for his want was in the sensations he felt as he licked away every single teardrop. From there he pressed his lips upon hers, and circled his arms around her body. It was odd, that even though he could control her every movement, he could feel her heart beating, her lips quivering, the sobs forming in the back of her throat. She was not a dead puppet, but one of life. One of…emotion.

That was what he craved. His parents never gave it to him, everyone was devoid of this simple thing, everyone but her. And now that he had her, it was the one thing she would not give him. The one thing missing from her dance. How could he be so blind? So many years ago, his own grandmother told him that that was the greatest challenge any puppetmaster must face…bringing life and emotion to your puppets.

"Where is your life, konichi?" he whispered into her ear. He could smell her strawberry shampoo, even though he had been playing with her for a day, it still lingered. Her smell, her feel, her taste, it was all life.

"Would you give it to me, Sakura?" he asked into her ear, leaking the shell. He pressed her body closer to him, and moved her arms around his neck. "Would you give me what you have shown me? What I have seen in your eyes?"

He could feel something catching in her throat, her heart beat speeding up, the tightening of her muscles. He buried his head into the crook of her neck and kept a firm grip around her waist.

"I release you…" he said as he cancelled the puppet jutsu. He felt his chakra leaving her body, and her own life filled her once again. Her body struggled against his, and her hands pushed against his chest in an attempt to break free. Sasori smiled with a maniacal glee. This, this is what he craved. This was her life.

"You will be my puppet without strings." Sasori whispered into her ear. Sakura turned to face him, with the beautiful fire in her eyes, a distinctive frown upon her bruised lips,.

"I hate you…" she said, gathering chakra into her hand flipping him over onto the floor of the small little room in Akatsuki headquarters. In a reversal of roles, Sasori was on the ground at Sakuras feet. He relished the pain that his stringless puppet had given him.

"Beautiful." He said, as Sakura kicked him in the side. He looked up at Sakura with adoration in his eyes. She was finally dancing the way that he wanted.

The only reason.

His look shocked Sakura, and she took a few step back and brought out her kunai.

"Little flower, your strength and life is so beautiful." He said to her, not moving to attack. He slowly moved to get up, but at the shift in Sakuras stance hse contented to sitting on the ground with his legs tucked under him.

"You're a sick freak!" Sakura said as she wiped her lips from the back of her hand.

"Geniuses are often midunderstood, my dear." The puppetmaster said shrugging his shoulders.

"A puppet all to my own, I don't need strings to make you dance. We shall play again, Sakura, my little puppet of life." He said before giving her a graceful bow and dissapearing in a smoke ball. Sakura coughed and shielded her eyes from the stinging smoke. When it had cleared, the puppet was left alone.


	2. Chapter 2

Authors note: once again I can't guarantee that I can finish this. I think I will. I hate short stories. To me, no story truly has an ending. Maybe that's why I can't finish a story. And I don't own Naruto, but I do want Sasori for Christmas.

_Oho. Worrying about others even with an injury like this? What a girl_ – Sasori, Chapter 274 page 3

"Why are you binding my hands like this, eh?" Sakura asked with a cynical smirk on her face. "And here I thought I was supposed to be stringless."

"You are bound, koinichi.." Sasori said as he finished the binding jutsu on her wrists, which remained locked together in front of her. "So that you can not escape and do harm."

Sakura tested the ropes experimentally. She had seen these in Tsunades office. They were special ropes designed to drain chakra and were virtually unbreakable and impossible to slip out of. The only person who could release them was the captor. Normally Sakura would have fought tooth and nail for her freedom, but she didn't for several reasons. The first was that she was weak from hunger, the second was that if she fought she would likely be knocked out and vulnerable, and the third reason was that she somehow believed that Sasori would not hurt her this time.

"And I thought I couldn't harm you, with that puppet body of yours." She told him gesturing towards his synthetic arms and legs.

"I never said it was myself I was protecting." The puppetmaster replied with a wry smile. "I thought you would like your hands bound rather than controlled. Or would you have it another way?"

Sakura remained silent.

"Is it so bad to be controlled?" Sasori asked as he tilted her chin to face him. Her back was propped up against the wall with her legs sprawled out in front of her.

'I don't care. GIVE ME FOOD!' Inner Sakura raged. Time had went by so slowly. Sakura stubbornly turned her head to the side away from him and a few strands of hair fell over her eyes. Sasori moved them away and tucked them behind her ears, making her profile more visible to him. He noted that her cheeks were slightly tinted pink, somewhat complimenting her hair. Or did her hair compliment her cheeks?

"There is no fear, is it? Being controlled…When my grandmother controlled you, the way you moved was…"

"Her doing." Sakura snapped. "I didn't fear anything, because she was fighting for the right side. She wasn't evil, like you. She was fighting for someone other than herself."

"And you Leaf fight, to protect, don't you? That holds you back, even more. There is only power in the end." Sasori said, stroking her warm cheeks with the back of his hand. Sakura turned her head the other way, avoiding looking at him in the eyes. Annoyed by her silence, Sasori continued.

"That seems to be the trend now, even the Kazekage…"

"His name is Gaara." Sakura interrupted. "He's not a container, he's not a weapon, he's not a demon! He's just GAARA! He's not a thing. PEOPLE are not things."

"And myself?" Sasori asked, sliding off his Akatsuki cloak as he stood to full height. His cloak fell to the ground like dark water, to reveal his masterpiece, his puppet body. Sakura took a few moments to analyze it from her spot on the floor, since her time was limited the last time. His hands and face seemed to be real, his feet as well. She did not want to guess at how far he had gone with his puppet conversion below his waist. There was a cavity and a long hollow cable wound around his abdomen, and she could just barely see the human part of his chest.

"MY flesh is gone. I am the perfect puppet. People are flawless. Things are perfect." Sasori boasted, somewhat appreciating the feel of her eyes on him.

"But you still have flesh. You still have a soul, you sick freak. You're not a thing. Things don't know 'art' like you claim to do." Sakura shot back.

"Good and evil are based on perspective. And so is my soul. I have 299 puppets. Have you not noticed that my first puppets were my parents? I can kill you in a second. If this thing you called a soul were to exist, then I would have lost mine long ago."

Sakura couldn't help but think back to what Naruto said in what seemed like such a long time ago. "A person not recognized as a human is not a human."

No. That wasn't right. It wasn't Naruto. Naruto had told her that someone said it. The person who said it was…

"Gaara." She said quietly to herself. Sasoris eyes widened. Just hearing that name on her lips angered him, and blood rushed to his ears, filling him with such emotions that he had not felt in years.

"NO!" he said, holding his hand up to strike her. Sakura did not flinch. Sasori stopped and drew in a breath.

"Why does his name anger you so?" Sakura asked, tilting her head. All fear was gone from her eyes. A small cockiness seemed to emanate from her. Never in his life did Sasori feel so powerless, especially against a slip of a girl such as this.

"Never speak his name in such a way." Sasori hissed. He leaned over and placed his hands on each side of her face and drew them closer to his. Don't say ANYBODYS name like that. Only mine. ONLY MINE!" he said, almost shouting at her.

"Sasori." She spat out coldly, as though his name was a vile thing inside her mouth. This seemed to break something into the vast reaches of his mind. He let go of her and let himself fall into a sitting position opposite from her. The glazed look in his eyes made Sakura wonder if she had inadvertently used some genjutsu on him. But this was impossible.

Sasori seemed to go back in time to when he was a child.

The cold manner in which his name was spoken.

They talked of him as though he was a thing. His foolish parents only loved him when they were things.

Things can only love things.

"Sakura..my Sakura" Sasori cooed as he seemed to regain her composure. He moved over her like a horrific angel of death. "Do you want to be my last puppet? My ultimate work of art, admired, revered, loved and respected by everyone?"

"Things aren't respected. Not the way humans are." Sakura said plainly.

"Art is beautiful."

"That's all it is. But a good person who saves lives and helps other people at the expense of their own, who fights for other peoples…They will be much more respected than any useless piece of art."

Sasori shook his head no.

"If I were to follow your logic then, Sakura. That would make you more respected than my art. But you're not. People have heard of the legendary Sasori of the Red Sand, who slaughtered villages with these worthless pieces of art. I am feared, I am respected. Sakura, nobody has heard of a brat like you, even though you risk your worthless life for people that you barely know, for old women whose life would have ended in a few years anyway."

"There's nothing wrong with…"

"Not even your old sensei Hatake Kakashi respected you, did he?" Sasori said, silencing Sakura. "Who would see potential in a worthless little pink headed girl?" he rambled on noticing the small hurt in Sakuras eyes. As he spoke he drifted closer and closer to her.

"No, the strength of the container and the Uchiha have overshadowed the little flower, giving it no light to grow and blossom into something beautiful. Only when the container and the Uchiha leave did you finally flourish as Tsunades little lackey."

"SHUT UP!" Sakura yelled as she pulled her legs up and kicked Saskori up from the underside of his chin. She jumped up on her own two feet and kicked him in the human part of his chest and pushed him to the floor. Once again Sasori did not move to retaliate. The cable in his abdomen whirled and lifted him up, a gruesome sigfht for most people, but not Sakura. Exhaustion, hunger, and anger had taken its toll on her.

"The truth often angers those people. No matter."

Sakura found herself pressed against the wall, her bound hands held above her by one of Sasoris. His toe to hers, his chest to hers, his face inches away.

"Do you feel it beating? This one part of me that I loathe and want to get rid of? I loathe it even moreso right now. Do you know why, Sakura?" he asked, swiftly moving his fingers through her hair and down to her cheek.

"I don't care." She snapped. "You're just some twisted little boy, scared and alone who is another victim of Sunagures emotionless climate."

"Is that how you see me, my dear?" he asked running his fingers over her lips. Sakura ignored the sensations the puppetmaster was giving her. She ignored his piercing gaze and returned one of her own. The cable in his abdomen whirred and wrapped around her waist, crushing her form against his.

"Do you not see the advantage of having puppet body? You won't get hurt, you won't feel anything, no pain, just beauty for all eternity. That is true art."

"There's more to life than beauty, I had to learn that by myself. Beauty doesn't get you respect. Power does."

"AND YET NOBODY SEES THIS!" Sasori yelled, excited at what she said. He released her bound hands but the cable around her waist kept her held to him. He whirled around with her as though they were dancing to a joyous tune. His arms were wrapped around her as well, lifting her off the ground while her legs remained kicking and kicking to get free.

"I see your power, your strength, the perfect combination of strength and beauty, THAT is why you're the perfect addition!" he all but sang. He leaned Sakura down for a dip, and kissed her on her lips, running his tongue along behind him. Sakura could not respond, she was too horrified by the madness the seemed to burst from him. He kissed her each cheek, her neck, her collarbone. He savored the feel of her skin, a thing he knew he could never duplicate in any of his puppets.

"Beautiful, lovely, beautiful!" he raved at the stunned Sakura. The cable unwound and twirled Sakura around and brought her back like a demented human yoyo. He did it again and this time he caught Sakura and brought her hands to his chest.

"And mine. That is your greatest feature, do you not agree, Sakura?"

"You're insane!" Sakura sputtered.

"And you're mine. Everything you want is here, do you not see, Sakura? I can give you power, beauty, recognition, even acknowledgement from those who you want. Join me Sakura! What more do you want?"

"HUMANS NEED MORE THAN THAT!" Sakura said, trying to find a proper argument. "I have people I care about, that need me, I won't betray my friends and family!" she said.

"Like your Sasuke did?" Sasori asked slyly, he placed a finger on her collarbone. "We often live by example then. You still want to find him? Did I not tell you that I have subordinates of Orochimaru. Become my stringless puppet, Sakura, and I can tell you of the worthless Uchiha."

"I won't betray them." Sakura said, standing firm. Sasori laughed.

"What's to betray? What actions would you be taking against your precious Leaf? Has Konoha been so protective of its citizens that they proclaim leaving a betrayal? Laughable!"

"You'll use me against my friends, my family, my home. That's betrayal."

"What's so wrong about that then? They're just pieces of meat."

"Gaara said that. Then Naruto beat him up. Maybe that's what you need." Sakura thew back at him. Sasori laughed again.

"Did I not tell you to not speak their names in such a manner?" Sasori said, leaning his face closer to hers. It creeped her out, and she tried to move away but Sasori had a firm grip on her bound hands and they pinned them to his chest like glue.

"Did I not tell you, Sakura? Why aren't you being a good puppet? No, you are being perfect. A puppet with true life. But Sakura, you have strings, they are not mine, but your own."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Sakura asked, sick and tired of his insane games. Sasori raised her hands and whirled her around, placing her back against his chest.

"Everyone has their own strings, and if they are pulled right then they can do whatever you tell them too."

Sakuras eyes flew open, and her hands started to tremble. Could he mean that…

"Sasuke, the containers, Gaara and Naruto, your parents, Konoha, they are your strings. To become my puppet you must remove your old strings and make them new."

"NO! STOP! YOU CAN'T…"

"Do you think of me so cruel, Sakura?" Sasori asked, his lips brushing againt her ear. "No, I wouldn't dream of doing it. I don't care about them, no, only my perfect stringless puppet. You see, I control my strings. I can sever them at will."

"Just like Chiyo-sama." Sakura said, thinking back to the old woman. An anger built up in her chest, rising and threatening to pour out of her lips like a burning vomit.

"I can pull your strings, Sakura. If I tell them that I can help you find your Sasuke, it would be helping your village, your Naruto. I could tell you that if you didn't agree I could add everyone you care about to my collection. In fact, I could use a new Kazekage with my marionettes. He'll be much happier with his predeccesors, don't you think Sakura?"

Sakura shook her head and violently thrashed against Sasori, anything to get free and kill him.

"I never said I would kill them, I said I could offer to. Do you see Sakura? I pull your strings, and you dance for me.

"My friends, the village, I won't.."

"Your strings are still there. Go back, Sakura. Sever them yourself. Tell them so they won't go looking for you. Reassure them, be their puppetmaster and keep them on their shelves. Then you will come back to me, or I will come for you. You can use your own strings to dance, or we can use my strings. Either way, you dance for me and only me. Do you understand, Sakura?" Sasori released Sakura s hands and she instantly turned away from him as far as she could go with the cable still around her waist. She held her confined hands above her in defense.

"Hm. Like a scared Rabbit. You're no fun." Sasori said, pouting. His cable slowly winded backe into his abdomen, sliding along her skin. It's tip slightly rubbed against her backside and her thigh, earning a disgusted shutter from Sakura. She lept back a good distance from him and her feet moved into a fighting stance. Sasori held his hands in front of him and performed a jutsu. Sakura flinched and prepared for the attack only to find her bindings removed from her wrist. As though anticipating the attack, he dodged and Sakuras fist flew over his head a millisecond later.

He dodged another attack, and another, and another.

'He's toying with me.' Sakura thought to herself. 'And all those artificial limbs must make him light and speedy.'

Gathering chakra in her fist again, and relishing the feel of controlling her own body once more, she slammed it into the ground and cracked the floor boards and the earth beneath it. Sasori used his abdomen cable to raise himself over the wreckage. He reached out for Sakura with that same calm look over his face. The tension was so high that Sakura didn't notice the clay object thrown in the room. It exploded and a gas began to fill the room. Recognizing the gas, Sakura held her breath and placed her hand over her mouth. Sasori was unaffected by the effects since his organs now consisted of a synthetic material and chakra devices.

"You took too long. Looks like you messed up the room too. Yea." An unfamiliar voice said out of Sakuras line of vision. Sasori was towered over her and she couldn't see the doorway.

"A pity. If only you would let me make you a piece of art, then you would not have such a weakness." Sasori said to Sakura as she fell over from lack of oxygen. He scooped her into his arms and held her close, silently enjoying her warmth and feel. He wanted to crush her to him, to feel every last bit of warmth. But now was not the time for that. He was above such sensations anyway.

'No…no puppet feels like this.' He thought to himself.

"Umm…The others were complaining about the noise." Deidara said as he leaned casually against the doorway. He looked at Sakura in Sasoris arms, mildly amused at the sight for whichever sick reason Sasori did not care to know.

"You never could understand art." Sasori replied, ignoring Deidara. His teammate looked back down at Sakura.

"Actually, I think for once we can agree on art. Yea."


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Thanks to Gigicerisier for betaing for me. Thanks to Kishimoto for making Naruto, which I do not own. Thanks to kikikun for making that first SasoSaku picture I've ever seen that got my heart fluttering, and thanks again to Gigi for making so many many more that forced me to open word and type my little heart out. There are a fewlines that ran through my head when I was writing this.

"If it was up to me, I would have figured you out" – The Suffering (Coheed and Cambria)

"Smile for your friends Sakura, wave to them, and say goodbye because your my little toy now." – kikikuns Sasori in my first SasoSaku picture (At the time I didn't even know who Sasori was. n.n Found at deviantart .com / deviation /21254113/

---

For the next few horrific months Sakura had lived her life in fear. It started on the very first day when she wondered if the past event had really occurred or not. Her logical mind assessed her state, and her worn clothes and the date on the calendar. 'The past week really did occur.' Inner Sakura grumbled as Sakura looked around the comforts of her own room.

The whole day she had acted spontaneously, hugging and crying every person she saw. She ended relationships that she did not want to have, and started new ones with people she wanted to meet. That night she waited outside the village for him to come and take her like a monster in the night. The hours passed by and eventually she drifted off to sleep. She awoke that morning with dew on her skin and a beautiful hand sized marionette that had a remarkable resemblance to her.

Her teeth clenched and her cheeks flushed as anger and confusion overtook her. Why had he not appeared? Had he decided to leave her in the village, moved by her tears and actions towards her friends?

Somehow, Sakura doubted it. The walk back to her home led her through a wide array of unpleasant thoughts.

'He never did say how long I had.' Sakura realized. How long DID she have to spend time with Naruto and say goodbye to everyone she cared about? A day? A week? Months, or even years?

The idea sickened Sakura. It created a deep pit in her stomach and cotton in her mouth.

After the first week Sakura had finally seemed to relax. And when the anniversary of the first month wondered by, she had repeated her actions just like she did on her first day back.

Her teachers, Kakashi and Tsunade had worried about her and wondered if it had to do with her cousin in Sunagure she had left to visit that week.

Apparently, the great ninjas of Konoha would call off a search for a valued medic if they found a note saying that said medic was visiting a sick relative. To be fair, Sakura did have a few relatives she knew about in Suna, but none the family had contacted in years. Her parents were always away on business to tell her teachers otherwise.

Her teacher's fears were drops in the bucket compared to Naruto's concern. He compared her to Gaara each passing day as he remarked on the circles under her eyes from lack of sleep, her lack of hygiene from her ruffled hair and dirty clothes, and even the small of blood.

The last one was because Sakura found herself training alone more and more. A small part of her was hoping that Sasori would return and end her agony while she was away from the eyes of the villagers. Another part was to forget the fear and worries and grasp the small hope that maybe she could become stronger and overpower the Akatsuki and live the rest of her life normally.

'And find Sasuke.' Inner Sakura agreed. Sakura relaxed against a tree, out in a secluded spot in the Konoha forest. She was too tired to notice the cuts and bruises across her body from the days training. Even if she did, she couldn't tell if if her bruises were ones she got that day, the day before, or the day before that.

'If only Sasuke could see you now.' Inner Sakura ranted. Sakura took a deep cleansing breath, and then winced at the painful exhale. Her heart was beating so fast from her exercises that Sakura could barely breathe. Even so, it was more than she could have gone three years ago. A small smile graced Sakuras lips as she raised her hand and observed the patterns made on her skin from the splotches of light coming through the leaves.

'My stamina was so low...If I could go back in time, then maybe I could have stopped...' Sakura halted her thoughts. Such meaningless hopes were going nowhere. Sasuke was gone, but Sakura knew he would not give his body to Orochimaru. It was ludicrous. He would never avenge his clan that way!

'If only I knew what the Akatsuki knew about Orochimaru.' she thought for probably the hundredth time since her first fight with Sasori.

The days went by in the same manner. Wake up at dawn, train with Tsunade, mission around noon, then train upon return until her body gave out, littered with a few Ichiraku Ramen dates with Naruto.

The only thing that broke her boring routine was her 16th birthday. Somehow Naruto had found out the date and had informed everyone he knew. Imagine how surprised Sakura was when she went to meet Naruto at Ichiraku Ramens and found half of the villages ninjas there with her. He said it was to make up for the two years he was gone.

Sakura beamed at his thoughtfulness, and decided to ask Naruto when his birthday was after the events were done with.

"Hey, you really didn't have to." Sakura gushed as Naruto ushered her over to a seat where a large cake was decorated with her name on it. "Really...thank you, Naruto." she said kissing the boy on the cheek. Naruto flushed red and grinned widely at the gesture.

"Heehee. No problem Sakura-chan." he replied scratching the back of his head.

"Enough with the talk, it's time for presents!" a very drunken Hokage proclaimed. She shoved past everyone and sat next to Sakura, plopping a heavy present on the table.

"Special scroll, written by me. Everything there is to know on chakra medicines. I may test you on it." she said while giving Sakura a half drunken noogie. Sakura fought her way out of her masters grip and smiled brightly. The two years had made Tsunade her surrogate sister.

"The world doesn't need two Tsunades." Jiraiya complained, presenting his unwrapped present to Sakura. It was a beautiful portrait of Sakura done in chalk pastel colors.

"Ah...thanks Jiraiya-sama." Sakura said as she admired of the beauty of it. She had halfway expected a gag gift from the perverted sennin, but this was quite shocking.

"Yes, yes. It's nice, isn't it?" Jiraiya said admiring his masterpiece. "There are many different body shapes, and you pull off the petit look rather nicely, which counters the Tsunade inside you."

"ARE YOU CALLING ME FAT?" Tsunade raged, lifting him off the ground. "I'll show you!"

"OI! TAKE IT OUTSIDE!" the owner of Ichiraku yelled. Tsunade did just that by throwing him outside like a peice of trash. A loud noise said that he probably hit the building across the street and knocked down a wall. Sakura gulped. A drunken Tsunade was even more frightening than a drunken Lee.

"Ne, Sakura-chan, open mine next!" Naruto said, pushing his present in front of the birthday girl. Sakura unwrapped the paper to find a stuffed slug with a zipper on it.

"You put your money in it. Now we match!" Naruto explained, holding his own frog money pouch.

"Fancy a game of chance for all the money in that pouch?" Tsunade asked, pointing at Narutos frog.

"Any time, Obaa..." Sakura covered his mouth.

"No gambling tonight, sensei." Sakura said sternly. Tsunade pouted and sat back down.

"Is it time for our presents?" Shino asked producing his gift from the inside of his coat. It was a bouquet of blue roses.

"I haven't seen roses this color before." Sakura mused as she smelled the flowers.

"My bees helped me cross pollinate breeds until I got the right color." Shino said somewhat proud of himself.

"Hai...Shino is a very good botanist." Hinata agreed, handing Sakura her present. "Mine isn't so good though. It's just some healing creams I made myself."

"HEY! Don't put yourself down like that Hinata!" Kiba yelled, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and giving her a brotherly noogie. "We talked about that, remember?"

"Hinatas healing creams are made with lots of care and love. Don't take them for granted." Shino said, placing a hand on the blushing Hinatas shoulder.

"Of course!" Sakura replied with a comforting smile. Naruto was shaking his head in the corner mumbling things like "So freaking weird…."

A basket of sweets and goodies were placed in front of Sakura. Ino, Shikamaru, and Chouji were all looking very proud of themselves.

"We all made these together with love too. There would be more but Chouji kept eating the mix." Ino told Sakura.

"I was testing the quality to ensure it's deliciousness!" Chouji shot back.

"Troublesome…" Shikamaru grumbled.

The Ino-Shika-Chou team was shoved out of the way by a green blur. Sakuras hands were seized by Konohas own green beast and he placed them in his hands.

"SAKURA-SAN! On the eve of the 16th year of your youth, I offer my undying love and protection! That's my good guy promise!"

Sakura winced at his nice guy sparkle. Had he been training all these years to perfect it? Lee's rantings were cut short when Tenten placed her foot on his back and shoved him to the ground.

"Idiot. That's no present for a girl. Here Sakura, this is from all of us." Tenten proclaimed, making a sweeping gesture to Lee and Neji off in the corner. He nodded at Sakura and Sakura waved at him.

Sakura took the gift and realized it was a new set of sharpened kunais. What else could she expect from one of Konohas finest weapons master?

Sakura smiled and thanked them. She leaned over to the dazed Lee at her feet and patted him on the head. "And thank you too Lee."

Kakashis gift was far more interesting. Somehow some of his summoned dogs had managed to be a daddy, and Kakashi had given Sakura one of the puppies. It was an adorable thing just old enough to be taken away from its mother. It was white with brown spots, leaving Sakura curious as to which of Kakashis dogs was the father. Sakura had named it Satsu. Kakashi showed her how to open up the summoning portal and bring out Satsu when needed, all though he and Sakura agreed it was better that they waited until Satsu had spent enough time with Sakura training before they put it to use. Kiba

offered to help her train it be a loyal tracker dog, to which Sakura gratefully accepted.

"A party, huh?" a rough familiar voice said from the doorway of the overcrowded restaurant. The owner of the voice glanced over the now quiet area and rested her gaze on the pink haired koinichi in front of the large cake surrounded with presents.

"Ah, you're birthday, pinky?"

"16th, Temari-san." Sakura replied proudly as she cuddled the new dog in her lap. Temari tilted her head and gave a small (scary) smile at the warmth that radiated from the group.

"Enough with the formalities Sakura. You helped save both of my dumbass brothers. So did blondie over there." She nodded in Narutos direction. The sand-nin sauntered over to Sakuras table and placed her hand on it.

"Well look, we never repayed ya, so why don't you come over to Sunagure and I'll get you and Naruto into Sunagures best spas.

Naruto immediately pumped his fist and yelled his agreement. Sakura wondered if Naruto even knew how fancy the Sunagure spas could get. After all, in a country full of heat and sweat, who would know better the best way to relax and get clean then they?

'But what if Sasori comes looking for me and doesn't find me? He'll take it out on the villagers. I wouldn't be able to find Sasuke anymore and…'

'FORGET THAT! IT'S A SUNA SPA!' Inner Sakura raged. 'The bastards stalking you anyway, and he'll be less likely to kidnap you in his hometown where people would know his face.'

"I'LL DO IT!" Sakura yelled in a very Naruto-esque fashion.

The idea of a relaxing vacation in Sunagure had put Sakura in an elated mood for the rest of the party. For her whole journey home, she forgot all of her problems. She didn't even care that her parents were working late when she returned home, or that her door was wide open and her lights were on. It happened many times when her Mother decided to clean her room.

But what she did care for was that somebody was lying down on her bed.

"SASORI!" Sakura almost shrieked.

"I forgot what a human bed was like." Sasori commented, as though he were merely on some tour or her room. He was flipping through pages of…

'Oh no…' Inner Sakura rumbled like a volcano about to erupt.

'He didn't….' Inner Sakura continued as the book read DIARY on the cover.

"You keep your strings in plain view. If I wandered in here I would have thought it was some silly little girls room, and not a shinobi. Have you learned nothing, yet?"

Sakura calmly walked over to the foot of her bed and cracked her neck. It somewhat reminded Sasori of one of the desert snakes about to strike.

"Comfortable?" she asked quietly, with a more than fake smile on her face. Sasori tilted his head as he analyzed her. 'Interesting…'

"Things don't need comfort." Sasori replied simply. A second after he spoke, Sakura launched her fist into the foot of her own bed and it shot straight up. Sasoris cable extended from under his Akatsuki robe and lifted him above the standing bed and place him toe to toe with Sakura.

"And a Happy Birthday to you." Sasori said.

"They're expecting me to go to Suna tomorrow. If you think I'm leaving with you today then they'll know something's wrong, and they'll find me." Sakura told him.

"Konohas hunter-nins can never find their criminals. You know that." Sasori challenged. Sakura rose to his bait as he expected.

"You don't want to be found. I do."

"Do you now?" Sasori asked, gesturing towards the window. "What is out there? Your family is non-existant. Your friends will come and go as the seasons. You will find more knowledge with us then you will with your master."

Sakura was silent for a while. Months of anticipation and waiting and insomnia had weakened her will. This was all too much for her.

"One week." She said.

"One more week to say goodbye?"

"One more week to decide."

"Done." Sasori said with a note of finality. "I know you are too intelligent to be deciding whether you're coming or going. You know your choices are whether I am taking you by force or coming willingly."

"I could warn the Hokage. My friends will come and find me, and every available ninja from genin to jounin." Sakura said quietly, clenching her fists in her hand. All of a sudden she felt so very tired. He was outmatching her on the intellect level, just like he was last time.

"Could you accept the casualties? All of your ninjas against the Akatsuki. Many will die. Some may be us, but most of the bodies would be casualties for the Leaf. Do you want their blood on your hands, Sakura?"

Sakura shuddered. She hated it when he said her name. It didn't deserve to be said by such a loathsome scum.

"I don't." she whispered.

"Then…."

"Then wait a week. Let me make arrangements." Sakura sighed. She was backed into a corner. And she hated it. She had trained so hard so that her skills would make her useful to her friends. The one time she had become a real use with her own strength it blew up back in her face.

"All right then." Sasori said. He grasped Sakuras hand and placed something in it. He pulled her arm to him and whispered "Happy Birthday" into her ear before he opened her window and jumped out. Sakura slumped to the ground and leaned against her dresser. She wanted to just curl into a ball and sleep on the floor right there, but instead she decided to open up her palm and take a peak at her present.

It was a summoning scroll. And Sakura didn't want to know what sick monstrous creation would be brought into the world if she tried it.

She was snapped from her thoughts when she heard a noise at her window. Sakuras heart pounded in her chest. She couldn't deal with Sasori again.

However it wasn't the aggravating puppetmaster at her window, but her teacher, Hatake Kakashi


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. The story is mine. Thanks to all the other SasoSaku writers. I'm sorry to those who were looking for a cool dramatic Kakashi confrontation. I hope that the OTHER confrontation will make up for it. Thanks to Kikikun, Blackbelt and Gigi. I got into a C2! YAAAY!

"Isn't it disdainful and curious that both of us think we know everything." – Incubus

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura exclaimed rushing over to the window. Immediately the smell of alcohol pervaded her nostrils. The silver-haired jounin almost fell into her window if Sakura had mpt caught him.

"SSSSssakuraaaa" he slurred as his student held him up. Silently Sakura thanked whatever deity up there that he was too inebriated to notice Sasori leave. 'Is he safe? What if they think he saw them?' she thought

"Kakashi, did you see…"

"You're getting older." He slurred, grabbing her by the cheeks. "Just like Rin. She would have looked….like…"

"You knew Aunt Rin?" Sakura asked dragging Kakashi into a more comfortable position on the floor, with his back leaned against her somewhat cracked bed.

"Obito…he's not Sasuke. I'm so sorry Sakura. Obito is not Sasuke."

"Sensei you're not making any sense. You're drunk." Sakura scolded. Tsunade had taught her long ago how to get rid of an intoxication by removing the liquid from the body, but this was not worth the chakra or the effort.

"If I hadn't taught Sasuke Chidori….hehe, he's not Obi…not Obi…Sakura would be happy…." Kakashi rambled.

"Sensei…" Sakura whispered sadly. She was not in the right state to be comforting a drunken angsty copy-nin. She made a mental note to find out which jounin decided to have an after-party at the bar and kill whoever decided to let Kakashi walk home alone.

"Come on, I'll take you home…ugh, at least you're not like like Lee when he's drunk." Sakura shuddered.

By the time Sakura had pushed the half-conscious Kakashi down the several blocks and into his apartment, Sakura was ready to scream out of exasperation. It was just about to reach midnight and all Sakura wanted was a hot bath and some decent sleep.

Fate would not grant her ease. Outside of Kakashis apartment, she heard some rustling noises. Sakura continued on the pathway home, hoping it was just an animal.

'See underneath the underneath.' Her teachers words rang through her head. She heard another rustling from one of the landscape trees near the street. Seeing nobody else around, Sakura decided.

She withdrew a kunai and shot it directly at the noise.

A white bird flew out of the tree. Sakura watched it fly around in the blackness for a few more seconds, before she continued on her way. She almost reached her house before she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. In one instance she pumped chakra to her feet and in the other she was on a rooftop of the building across the street.

Not surprisingly, more white birds were there. They all flew away at the sudden intrusion.

"Come out. I'm not stupid. What kind of idiot thinks white birds are so damn active at night?" Sakura said impatiently. She moved her feet into a fighting stance and readied another kunai.

"Ummm….you're pretty smart." An unfamiliar voice said behind her. The kunoichi whirled around to face another Akatsuki member sitting calmly underneath a watertower. He looked relaxed and calm, with his body stretched out as though he was sitting on a couch. Another white bird seemingly came from the palm of his hand and flew out to join the rest of hem.

"It gets boring following you. I like to practice." He explained.

"Who are you? Another Akatsuki?" she asked.

"Deidara. Yea, it's a pleasure." He said. "I'm Sasori-danna's partner. He's not here, he'll be back. It's frustrating, yea."

"Waiting? Waiting for what? Why didn't you guys wait and take me soon thereafter dropping me off?" Sakura asked

"Ummm…it's a secret." Deidara replied. "Why don't you ask Sasori-danna? Akatsuki policy says partners can't be apart too long."

"Where is he?"

"Sasori? Ummm…another secret." Deidara replied with a sadistic grin. Sakuras fist tightened. Did he like torturing her?

"I mean it's annoying. Sasori-danna hates waiting and keeping people waiting, but he has to. I just want to get this over with and out of here, you know? Yea."

"Well you're screwed. You can't get Naruto and you can't get Gaara. And in both villages they know you. "

"Ummm…no, that's not true. Nobody knows what Sasori-danna and I look like over here. In fact Sasori-danna and I could walk around town 'cause ummm…nobody knows us." He said with a proud smile.

"Are all Akatsuki this insane?" Sakura sighed.

"Like…is that a tirck question?" Deidara asked. Sakura let out a frustrated cry.

"One more week…" she grumbled.

"Hey, I wanna get out of here as much as you do. Deidara said.

"THEN. WHY. DON'T. YOU. DO. IT." Sakura yelled through clenched teeth.

"Maybe you should go back to bed. You're getting cranky." Deidara suggested. Sakura facepalmed.

"How can a girl sleep knowing there are criminals outside her bedroom?" Sakura exclaimed.

"Umm…I can help you with that..yea. You don't look so good when you don't sleep. Not as beautiful, y'know." Deidara said back. He put his finger underneath his eye. "Gives you crows feet. Ugly, y'know? Yea."

"Oh shut up. I'm not taking beauty tips from an Akatsuki."

"Umm…suit yourself." Deidara shrugged. "But you should at least go to your room now. Your parents are coming in…yea." Deidara said, p pinting down to the street. It was true. Her mother and fauther were both approaching her house. "If they find you gone they'll be upset. So you should go now. Yea. Or I could just tell kill them so they won't be upset. You want that? Yea…"

Sakura didn't give him a chance to reconsider. She pumped Chakra into her feet and leapt from the building onto her windowsill. She tumbled into her room and jumped into her covers just in time to hear her mother crack open the door and check on her.

Sakura did not sleep a wink that night.

After what seemed like hours and hours of tossing and turning, the sun finally rose. Abandoning the notion of a peaceful sleep, Sakura decided to pack her things for her trip to Sunagure instead. Her increased paranoia had heightened her senses, so when she heard her bedroom door open she almost killed her best friend.

"SAKURA-CHAN! HEY! Come on! Your parents let me in on their way out!" Naruto said as he held his arms in front of him. Sakura lowered her weapon and gave him an apologetic look. Behind him she saw Satsu scurry around his ankles. The puppy ran around Sakuras room a few times and then jumped onto her bed. It ran in several circles before curling into a ball and falling asleep.

"Naruto, I'm sorry." She said as she stopped folding her clothes. In her mind, she wasn't packing for Sunagure, she was packing for the rest of her life. Sakura sighed and sat on the bed next to Satsu, as she scratched it behind the ears. 'It must have run under the living room couch as soon as he smelled Sasori. I was too stupid to notice.' Sakura thought.

"Hey, why are you taking so much stuff? You know you're coming back, right?" Naruto walked around Sakura and peered over her shoulder to see the various items she was adding.

"A ninja must always be prepared. Now stop looking at my stuff!" Sakura yelled at him. Naruto turned around and cupped the back of his head with his hands.

"Heeheehee. Sorry Sakura-chan." Naruto looked around the room for a few seconds before sitting on the bed next to Sakura.

"Hey, Sakura-chan, isn't it cool that we get to go back to Sunagure? You think they'll throw a party for us?" he asked. Sakura propped herself up on her elbows and looked at the ceiling.

"Don't think so. But who knows."

Naruto mimicked Sakuras actions, only he placed Satsu on his stomach. The puppy stirred at the movement but cuddled back into Naruto moments later.

"Hey, Sakura-chan, know what's funny?" Naruto asked as he stroked Satsus soft fur.

"What Naruto?"

"The last time you really talked to Gaara was when he tried to kill you three years ago. And then you saved his life! Isn't that funny?" Naruto began to laugh loudly when Sakura cut him off.

"I do't think that's very funny." She said stoicly. Naruto turned to his friend and gave her another one of his trademark grins.

"Aw, come on Sakura-chan, the sand squad is grateful, I bet."

There was an awkward pause, and then Sakura said to him "Naruto…do you think that Sunagures customs are harsh? The way their children are raised?"

"Ne, Sakura-chan, just because of the way they were raised doesn't mean they'll always be bad. Gaara said that he wasn't loved, but now he's the Kazekage. Temari and Kankuro seem to have come a long way."

"Yea…" she said wistfully. She recalled what Chiyo told her in what seemed like years and years ago.

"What made him this way is the terrible customs and teachings of the sand…." She said. 'It's no excuse!' Inner Sakura yelled when Chiyo said it. Inner Sakura was screaming it now. 'Naruto had no parents, and he's fine. So did Gaara. And Sasu…no…but…great shinobi have been raised as orphans.' She told herself.

"Hey, Sakura you're too quiet. Just be nice to Gaara and he'll love you like everyone else does!"

That seemed to shock Sakura out of her stupor. A warm smile crossed her features. Sakura sat up properly and looked at the sleeping Satsu on Naruto's stomach. She reached up her hand and tenderly pet the creature.

"Naruto…are you ready to leave?"

In the moonlight, Sakura bathed. The others would be fast asleep, and she refused to bathe anywhere where Naruto was conscious. Even so the thought of cleansing herself in the nearby river was a very dangerous one. And yet her logic overtook all else. Sakura remembered Tsunade lecturing her at the beginning of her training all those years ago about how a ninja smells.

"Never wear perfume, and never stink. Some ninjas have exceptional smell, and you can become easily detected." She would say. Sakura noted that she did indeed reek from the whole day of running and worrying about the Akatsuki.

It took Sakura almost ten minutes to set up all of her traps. Most were rigged to explode and some even triggered a genjutsu. Not only did she have to worry about the Akatsuki, after all, but she also had to worry about bandits and attackers. They were only hours away from Sunagure, so thieves, bandits, and rogue ninjas would be thick in that area of the woods. In fact, Sakura was sure that in a few short miles the trees would begin to thin out until there were only palm trees, and then cacti, and then desert for miles and miles.

To travel during the day would be the best choice of options, due to its short distance. The heat would prevent bandits and attackers from waiting too long due to the risk of dehydration.

'And I am NOT going to smell of two days worth of sweat when I get to Suna.' Inner Sakura raged once again.

Finally deciding that her traps were set correctly, Sakura quickly stripped of her clothing and jumped into the river. She had already decided on a quick cleansing bath rather than a relaxing one. She had ducked under the water for only two seconds. It was funny how that was all it took. Two seconds without sound, sight or smell, and then there was a crazed half-puppet half-man in front of her.

The moon and stars offered little light. The small speckles of light reflected off the water and onto Sasor's face. He was watching the paranoid kunoichi with a mild interest.

"If you had just asked for some privacy instead of this elaborate show…"

Thanks to all my reviewers. I like writing for Deidara. I think I'll write for him more often. Well, the next chapter will be a little bit more different. Thank you again.


	5. Chapter 5

Authors Note: I started this a long time ago as a one shot, and to get these nasty images out of my head. Because of college, things have been difficult and I have been unable to continue the story. For this, I apologize. I now have the rest of the plot figured out, and so I'm going to try harder to continue this.

Several things encouraged me to write this. It was a mix of the recent rush of reviews and Sasori finally appearing in the anime. The last thing was what convinced me to complete the chapter and post it. It was a small fanart done by Gigi for the Flower Puppet. I have never received fanart before, and I was truly touched. Thank you Gig, for you have inspired me to complete this story. There will be much more to come after this!

The main purpose of this chapter is to set up Sasoris way of thinking, so that he doesn't just show up one day and say "I'M OBSESSED WITH YOU SAKURA! KIDNAP NO-JUTSU!" And Also, I wanted some GaaSaku. There will be more of that, as well as KankSaku in the next chapter.

As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto, but I do own the story. Enjoy!

I picture your face in the back of my eyes,

a fire in the attic a proof of prize

Incubus

To Sasori no Akasuna, humans were flawed down to their very last detail. It was something that he learned from a very early age. It was just that simple. Humans had ridiculous emotions, they had spongy and stinky skin, and they died all too quickly.

Yes…they died entirely too quickly.

He hated to think of when he first realized the fact. How young was he when he realized how perfect the world would be if they were all puppets of a more powerful benevolent force? His parents, for instance, had their youth and power preserved for all eternity due to his benevolence. Love was permanently etched into their eyes, and he would forever be in their embrace.

He was so young when his own teammates had perished in a pointless shinobi war. If shinobi were to be tools, then why not have the physics of tools? Why couldn't wars be fought by real tools? Humans were so unrelenting and cruel.

He decided to become the perfect shinobi, a tool that could not feel love, get hurt, or die. Powerful, unfeeling, emotionless. He would live for eternity in the heat of battle.

He quickly found his way into the Akatsuki. They had a perfect goal: power, no matter the cost. His partner was a man who shared his ambitions; Orochimaru, a former student of the Fire Country's Third Hokage. They would have never called each other friends, but they did have a silent respect for one another. They both shared the ideal of an eternity fighting battles with boundless knowledge and power. But the man was a fool. He had no concept of art and beauty, only the end goal. While humans were flawed, beasts were flawed even moreso. His association with snakes was ghastly, even for Sasori's eyes. Nevertheless, he had put up with it until he was betrayed.

Together, they had worked towards their goal of immortality. Sasori never agreed with Orochimaru's methods of using the elements of a shedding snake towards preserving the skin tissue, while Orochimaru never agreed with treating the skin with burning chemicals and wood byproducts. And yet they both agreed on the importance of preserving their youth.

A problem Sasori had come across, once he had replaced each and every part of his body with wood was that certain parts would have to be kept with human flesh, even if every other part underneath it was false. For instance, his hands would have to have to remain in a human like form, even though his bones, most nerves, and some muscles were gone. After all, the slightest kink or splinter in a wooden finger could hinder the movements of many puppets at his disposal. His facial muscles and outer skin was also mostly human as well, lest his speech be hindered.

He needed his heart, and his brain, to produce chakra and his knowledge. His eyes and ears were left in function, as they were essential to any ninja. While he was not all puppet, he was a wonderful living puppet. And, after many years, he discovered a wonderful jutsu that would constantly refresh and regenerate skin cells. And Orochimaru had stolen it. He used it to fuel extra external skin to "shed". His lifes work was stolen and squandered by a fool who could not understand anything. But Sasori was a puppetmaster. It wasn't long before he pulled the right strings, and the Akatsuki turned on Orochimaru.

It was his weak human parts that had betrayed him in the end. Years had passed since they cast out Orochimaru, and they planned a new attack on the jinchuuriki of his homeland, Sunagure's own Kazekage. Everything had gone perfectly, until he was scouting ahead and saw _them. _

He was up for a challenge to fend off the Kazekage's would be rescuers. He had expected highly specialized ninja squads, the best of the best. He was not expecting to face his grandmother and a young pink haired girl who was pursuing his old teammate, and Itachi's younger brother.

Sasori had seen a woman fighting for the honor of a loved one. Many respectable kunoichi had sought to kill him after the murder of their fathers, husbands, brothers, or lovers. But something about her mannerisms made him believe that even though she claimed to be fighting for the younger Uchiha, the Kazekage, and information on Orochimaru, she was really fighting for herself. She was fighting to prove something to her own self rather than another. This was new, especially in such a young thing.

As the battle progressed, he became more and more aware of how skilled she was. His grandmother, the old bird, had sensed that special something in her too. During the fight, they both looked out for each other, and the kunoichi let her emotions run high and deep into the fight. She was so inexperienced, so what had possessed his grandmother, a shrewd and tough woman, to ruin her best puppets, her children, to protect the petal haired shinobi? An old voice rang in his head that he had not heard in years. 'Isn't it odd?' it asked, 'That the beings that share your blood are protecting the inexperienced kunoichi at their own risk?'

There were two anomalies in the equation, he observed. There was he, the one who had the genetics, but no real blood to speak of. He was not the protector. He was the aggressor. And then there was her, the only one in the cave who did not share the thin threadlike bonds of family. Anomalies in equations had two purposes; to be factored out, or to be altered so that the equation was balanced. The anomaly known as Haruno Sakura absolutely refused to be factored out. What's more is that the protection of his grandmother had spoken volumes. At some point in the battle, something had clicked in the calculating Sasori's mind. The kunoichi was not meant to be factored out. The only way to balance the equation was to make her one of the Red Sand.

He knew that she would not give up until somebody was dead, and so he provided her that. Shortly near the end, he replaced his body with a completely wooden one and controlled it from a distance, and cut the strings when his parents had pierced his "heart". In her weakness, Sakura did not notice his ventriloquism act, and truly believed that he himself was dead as he spoke his last words. He never did get to find out if his Grandmother believed he was dead or not. Sasori left after Sakura did, in order to recover, lest the rest of her team sense his presence.

He had learned from Deidara's birds how his grandmother died. If he had the ability, he wondered if he would have mourned. He felt respect for the old woman, his teacher and mentor. This was the reason he told himself when he found himself at her grave a few weeks after the incident. He sensed another presence, and he quickly hid himself into the cliff the graves were against.

Sasori never found himself surprised by the actions of humans. But this was certainly different. It was the young kunoichi who he had battled before, accompanied by the Kazekage himself. They were chatting quite comfortably, and for some reason that evoked something in Sasori that he had not had in years. Irrationality.

"When we were children, my brother called her a witch." Gaara said, placing a boquet on her grave. "I never knew that she was the one who helped create the monster I am."

"You are not a monster. And Chiyo-baasama felt regret for what she did. She told me that before she died." Sakura said as she placed a flower arrangement of her own on the grave. She didn't notice how Gaara looked intently at her as she did this, but Sasori did. Sasori felt a strange rush of calculations going through his mind. He also felt an unfamiliar sudden wave of heat crashing over his eyes. After Sakura had placed the flowers on Chiyos grave was done, she bowed her head to offer a silent prayer with Gaara following her lead.

After they were done, a silence was born between the two. Through Sasori's point of view, their silence did not appear uncomfortable as it should have been in such situations.

"They said she was a rival of the Fifth Hokage, your master, correct? Temari-san said that even she was impressed by your skills with medicine."

Sakura seemed to be a little bit taken aback by Gaara's offhand compliment. She only smiled warmly. The concept that he was making an effort to socialize was not lost on Sakura. "Yes. I'm just glad I could be useful this time." A familiar feeling of adness and ueselessness washed over her. If she was a better shinobi, maybe they would not be standing over Chiyo-baasamas grave.

"Stop." Gaara cut her off immediately. Sakura silenced herself and realized she was sounding quite pathetic at that moment. There was another brief period of silence before she spoke again.

"Ne, Gaara-san…I heard something a long time ago. About how the children of Suna were raised." Gaara and Sasori both noticed at the same time that her eyes were on an unmarked ill-taken care of grave. The word "Sasori" was brutally carved into rock, as though merely writing the name was a burden on the carver. There was a pause, as though Sakura was expecting Gaara to say something to refute the unspoken rumor. The uncomfortable silence urged Sakura to speak more.

"That, the children of Suna were raised harshly…."

There was still silence. Surely the Kazekage would not speak to her about his childhood. That was too…intimate. "Well, then…"

"He didn't."

The remark from the silent Kazekage shocked Sakura, and she did a stumbled over her words as she tried to respond. After a second, she finally managed to stammer out, "What do you mean?"

"The children here, they just didn't have their parents."

Sakura thought back to the battle with Sasori. Chiyos puppets looked like Sasori. She heard him say that they were his parents. 'But they were so young!' She thought, 'How old was Sasori when they died? He must have been a child.'

"It's not fair to anybody, when mothers and fathers are taken away from their children." Sakura said wistfully as she took one of the flowers off of Chiyos grave and held it in her hand.

"If Naruto…and Sasuke…and you, Kazekage-sama, and even Sasori, had grown up with their mothers and fathers…do you think that things would be different?" she asked. Her voice sounded more like she was talking to herself and not really expecting an answer.

"Death is the way of the ninja." Gaara stated simply. "We have to learn to accept that."

Sakura stood silently, as though she herself was trying to accept that simple statement. "But can you ask a small child without parents to accept that? It's not fair." She said sadly as she placed a flower on Sasori's grave. From his position, Sasori's eyes widened. He had never expected anybody to lay a flower on his grave.

After that, Sasori of the Red Sand became entranced. He became curious of the girl who would dare to lay a flower on his grave. He had followed her back to Konoha and used all of his skills to learn everything about her. It was actually a leisure activity, and Deidara had noticed that information gathering certainly did more to his mood than to sit in his room with his puppets and sulk.

In actuality, Deidara had become interested as well. The artist became curious of the Haruno girl for a number of reasons. The first reason was that she was alive and still held Sasori's interest. Deidara had previously wondered if Sasori was a necrophiliac, since the only time he ever looked at anything remotely female with such intensity was when it was cold and unmoving. Deidara on the other hand, preferred his women like his art. Instead of being observed, admired, and preserved, a woman was more beautiful when her warm lithe body is writhing under him until she peaks, and that brief second where she realizes what has happened, when her eyelids flutter with fright and wonder, her toes curl, her face blooms…that was that single fleeting moment when a woman was truly beautiful. While Sasori wanted Sakura preserved and admired for all eternity, Deidara didn't mind the idea of catching the interesting girl off guard and whisking her away so that he could catch her one fleeting moment of true beauty, and then another, and then another, and then another.

Sasori knew his partner too well. That was why he had kidnapped the kunoichi himself when she was training. A simple sleeping powder was all it took, and she was his. And even after he released his stringless puppet, he couldn't help but watch her. Which was where he stood now.

He had watched her carefully place traps of all sorts everywhere she could so that she could enjoy a moments rest. How quickly he forgot that humans needed rest and privacy. By all rights and decency, he should have looked away. Alas, his partner left his side to take a better look. Sasori would have sighed, if he was human. An old voice in his head resonated, 'You have to learn to share your toys, or you'll never make friends…'

'With friends like this….'

And so he had stepped out of his hiding spot and announced his presence to his stringless puppet. Across the river, he noticed Deidara following suit. Her dripping wet body emerged from the water. Not wanting Deidara to see more than he already had, he offered Sakura the towel that was waiting for her at the riverbank.

"Why are you here?" she demanded after she reached for the towel. She grasped it and attempted to pull it from his grip. Sasori suddenly yanked the towel torwards him, and Sakura stumbled forward into his arms. He quickly wrapped the towel around her body, pinning her arms to her sides. She turned her body away from him, and Sasori leaned down and whispered into her ear.

"Sakura-chan, you know how I hate making people wait. I think I might just take you back with me now." He reached up his hand and jerked her face towards his. A second later, instead of the beautiful shimmering Sakura in his arms, there was a log. If Sasori had less manners, he would have definitely swore at how easily she had done the body replacement jutsu.

The missing-nin quickly located her chakra and found the shadow of her nude form in the trees. "Go away, Sasori. My friends are expecting me."

Sasori was so frustrated by the little imps trickery that he hadn't noticed that Deidara was at his side. Before Sasori could ask what his partner was doing, Deidara snatched the towel from Sasoris hand and waved in the direction her voice came from.

"You still need your towel, un! Yea, come and get it or your friends will think that something is wrong."

Sasori suddenly felt a very large recognizable chakra surge come from the trees, and he immediately moved away in time to dodge a very large tree trunk that landed where Deidara was standing one millisecond before.

There was only a breif glimpse of Sakuras nude form before she wrenched the towel from Deidaras hand. There was a tense moment, and Sakura opened her mouth to say something when Narutos voice rang from the woods.

"Oi, Sakura! Are you done yet?"

With each word, it was obvious Naruto was getting closer. Sakura turned to the two Akatsuki only to find that they had dissapeared.

"I'm done Naruto!" she called back, grateful that she and Naruto had agreed to call after each other if they were gone for more than fifteen minutes. She leapt across the river and rushed back to camp. There were many things to be done.


End file.
